On quite a few days we drove down to Lahaina, a little coastal town in West Maui which is circa a 15min drive away from Kaanapali beach. Lahaina is really cute with quite a few colourful buildings and lots of local clothes and jewellery stores. There are also a few laid back places to eat with good food and a small outlet centre. Whilst you probably won’t spend an entire day in Lahaina only, it is worth visiting if you don’t stay too far away. Driving down from Lahaina towards some of the major South Maui beaches you also pass lots of small beaches which are perfect for a more remote feeling on the beach without tons of people :)

After an early rise this morning at 6.30am, we arrived at 8.00am at the scuba diving site near Lahaina in Maui.

We were told that you would see lots of fish but I didn’t expect it to be so amazing! We saw 10 huge turtles, one just 50cm away from me, 3 little sharks chilling under a reef and such a great amount of variety of fish. It was so beautiful and I had never seen so many turtles at once! Will post the videos soon – went diving with the Go Pro :)

After the dive we headed towards Lahaina into the wharf. There we had coffee and waited until our restaurant would open to get some food.

We chose Cool Cat Maui to grab a bite. I had a fish sandwich which was very good. We also shared a mint chocolate milkshake – omg this stuff is soooo yummy!!

Once we finished our meal we still walked a bit through Lahaina and I found super stunning white sparkly t-strap sandals :)

Haleakala (Haleakalā), also referred to as the East Maui Volcano, is an immense shield volcano that actually makes up 75% of the Maui island. The tallest peak of the volcano is 3,055 metres high – you will literally be standing above the clouds!

It’s easy to visit the volcano’s summit as it’s part of the Haleakala National Park: Simply rent a car in town and drive up the gorgeous mountain until you reach the top. The roads are entirely paved and it’s super safe to drive (not like the Road to Hana..). It’s quite cold up there though (between 5 and 15°C). So make sure to bring some warmer clothes with you. And, as for any road trip through a national park, come with a full tank, bring lots of water and food. As you can see in the photos, I obviously had forgotten the extra clothes haha

And not only the peak of the volcano is absolutely breathtaking, also the road up has its fair share of stunning spots for taking little breaks or having picnics.

Haleakala was home to demigod Maui’s granny..

There is a beautiful legend to the Haleakala volcano which says that the crater at summit of Haleakala was home to the grandmother of the demigod Maui. It is said that Maui’s grandmother helped him to capture the sun, forcing it to slow down in order to lengthen the day. Have you seen the Disney movie Moana? It’s so beautiful – make sure to watch it before you head to Hawaii!

Convinced yet? It’s really such a beautiful place and makes a perfect day trip in Maui. Read more info about the volcano and how to get there here on the official Haleakala National Park website. And for more tips for Maui, check out the Road to Hana here, Lahaina here and the Maui Hyatt Regency here. For lots of beautiful photos of Maui, click over to this one and this one.